Tell Your Story -- Making the Invisible Visible

(Paul said this message could be re-posted)

Hi Everyone,

I have been making regular videos and putting them on YouTube for about a
year now. I started to do it mainly to keep a record for myself but also I
hoped that they may help others in at least knowing that they are not alone.
I
have been very surprised at the response that I have had, and my videos have
been watched over 13,000 times! This got me thinking....


I think that I am right in saying that May is ME awareness month. I have set
up a YouTube group for people to post videos about their experiences with
having ME. My hope is that this will help to raise awareness of the
condition.
Telling your story can be very powerful. It is easy for the public and
politicians to ignore facts and figures; it is far harder for them to ignore
real people, with real faces! All of the major political parties have
YouTube
accounts now as they have come to realise that it has huge potential to
raise
awareness of their policies. It wouldn't surprise me I some of their party
workers use it to find out the concerns of the public. I am speculating
here,
but it does seem reasonable.

The media is another group that often takes notice of things placed on
YouTube, so if enough people place their stories in this group, it may be
that
someone in the media will pick it up. But if none of this happens I still
think
that it would be a worthwhile project as it will encourage many people in
the
UK and worldwide who are suffering from ME. One way to get our videos the
most exposure is to get as many people to watch and rate them as possible. A
place near the top of YouTube's search engine, or if possible on their front
page, would create massive publicity.

So if you have a web cam, and would like to contribute please do. Don't
worry too much about the quality of the video. My videos not at all
professional.
I usually I have a rough idea what I am going to say and just speak! A
professional presentation is not important, what is important is you and
your
story. Your story counts. Someone has said that ME is an invisible disease,
let's
try and make it visible!

Here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/group/mecfsmystory

BW.

Paul